Nintendo brings arcade classic ‘Donkey Kong’ to the Switch

Every year at the Electronics Entertainment Expo (E3), Nintendo holds a “Treehouse Live” stream where it makes several game-related announcements.

At the end of its final Treehouse Live presentation at this year’s E3, Nintendo revealed that its arcade classics Donkey Kong and Sky Skipper are coming to the Switch.

This marks the first time that arcade versions of Nintendo games have been available on home consoles.

Donkey Kong is an iconic 1981 Nintendo title from legendary game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, who would later go on to develop the Mario and The Legend of Zelda franchises, among other properties. The Switch port of Donkey Kong includes three versions of the game: the original Japanese arcade game, a re-released version that fixed a few bugs and an international version featuring a different order of stages.

The Switch re-release also includes two additional score modes: a standard high score mode and a ‘Caravan Mode’ with a five-minute time limit.

Last month, Nintendo also released an enhanced port of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freezeon the Switch, meaning fans can now play Donkey Kong’s earliest and most recent adventures on the same system.

Sky Skipper, meanwhile, is a more obscure 1981 Nintendo arcade game which has players pilot a bi-plane to avoid enemies while collecting items and fuel. Most notably, the game was never actually officially released.

According to reports, Nintendo of America had set up test cabinets of the game in bars and arcades to see if players liked it. However, reception was apparently underwhelming enough that Nintendo never went through with putting out the game. The only remaining cabinet of the game is said to be at Nintendo’s Japanese headquarters.

Sky Skipper is set for release in July, although pricing hasn’t yet been confirmed.

Both games are part of Nintendo’s Arcade Archives line, a series of arcade re-releases available on the Switch. The ports are handled by Japanese publisher Hamster, which has previously added the likes of Mario Bros. and Punch Out! to the Arcade Archives collection.